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Saturday, March 30, 2013

Here are the books shipping to comic shops in April that you may want to keep an eye on...

New School HC - A new graphic novel from Dash Shaw, whose creation Bottomless Belly Button, debuted to much acclaim a few years ago. This new book features a teenager searching for his brother at an amusement park.

Atomcat SC - From the king of manga, Osamu Tezuka, comes an all-ages tale about a bullied boy who loves Astro Boy, and finds an abandoned kitten who is granted the powers of Astro Boy after an alien encounter.

Superman: The Golden Age Omnibus (Volume 1) HC - An omnibus edition collecting the very beginnings of Superman, from Jerry Sigel, Joe Schuster and more. 784 pages for $75, including Action Comics #1-31, plus more goodies!

The Property HC - A new graphic novel from the acclaimed creator of Exit Wounds.

Cyborg 009: Chapter 000 - The first issue of this new series by Archaia, reimagining the classic manga, is available for $1!

In the Days of the Mob HC - A collection of one of Jack Kirby's first projects at DC in the 70's, for the magazine of the same title.

A Distant Soil #39 - The first new issue in six years, this begins the final chapter of the saga by Colleen Doran.

3 New Stories - A new one-shot comic from Dash Shaw featuring three short stories.

Thanos Rising #1 (of 5) - From Jason Aaron and Simone Bianchi, the beginnings of Thanos revealed in this mini-series.

Jupiter's Legacy #1 - New series from Mark Millar, with art by the ever-talented Frank Quitely.

Terry and the Pirates: The George Wunder Years (Volume 1): 1946-1948 HC - George Wunder followed up Milt Caniff on the beloved adventure strip, and now Hermes Press is picking up where the IDW Caniff collections left off.

Absolute Superman/Batman (Volume 1) HC - Who doesn't love the dynamic between DC's biggest icons? Now you can get caught up on the team-ups in this $100 Absolute Edition.

Star Trek: The John Byrne Collection HC - Four Star Trek titles by John Byrne collected in a single hardcover by IDW, just in time for the new movie.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Works (Volume 1) HC - Collecting the first seven issues, and the Raphael Micro-Series, this is the color editions of the original Laird/Eastman comics that IDW has been releasing.

Marvel Now Collections - A bunch of Marvel Now books get collections this month, so it's time to get caught up! Find out what's been going on in titles like Avengers Academy, Indestructible Hulk, Journey Into Mystery and Cable and X-Force.

Steve Ditko's Monsters (Volume 2): Konga HC - Following up on Gorgo, this is more Ditko giant monster action.

Saturday, March 16, 2013

My new book, Dark Genesis, is available for sale now! And to kick it off, I'm having a contest! Everyone who enters gets a free copy of Dark Genesis from Smashwords, in the e-book format of their choice, and one lucky person who enters will win a $40 giftcard to Amazon or Barnes & Noble! Just fill out the rafflecopter below!!Alyssa opened her eyes to darkness. And in the first flash of light provided by a gathering storm, she could make out a ring of bodies surrounding her.

With no memory of who she is, Alyssa stumbles into a dark world populated by witches. The witches are powerful, and demonstrate frightening powers, but even more terrifying are the monsters who rule over the land. Vampires, werewolves and other awful creatures of the night have taken over, forcing the witches behind stone walls, afraid to venture outdoors. But Alyssa finds that as she kills certain monsters, memories return to her, memories of a life on Earth, and the boy she left behind.The quest to collect her memories and piece together the puzzle of what has happened to her is a daunting one, with betrayals and sacrifices every step of the way. But Alyssa is determined to fight for a world that is not her own, destroying powerful monsters along the way, so that she can return home to the boy she is coming to love through the memories she recollects.

Guardians of the Galaxy #1 - Guardians of the Galaxy is of course the next Marvel franchise to hit the silver screen, so I bet a lot of people are eagerly awaiting this series to familiarize themselves with the characters. I really like the comics from a few years ago, so I'm definitely on board for this new series.

John Byrne's Fantastic Four: Artist's Edition HC - If there was ever a time to get on board for IDW's excellent Artist's edition, this is it!

Age of Ultron #1 (of 10) - The next big Marvel event begins here, in which the near future is ruled by Avengers villain Ultron.

Domovoi TP - This looks like a cute supernatural story, taking place in a town where creatures of folklore are real.

Ultimate Comics: Wolverine #1 (of 4) - And more Wolverine. Wolverine's son, Jimmy Hudson, learns about his past in this mini-series that tells about the mission Logan was on that led to Jimmy's birth. Cullen Bunn writes this one!

Judge Dredd: Year One #1 (of 4) - The first "Year One" story featuring the judge.

Lone Wolf and Cub Omnibus (Volume 1) TP - This value-priced manga, collecting the beginnings of the classic series by Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima, is in a larger format than the original Dark Horse releases, with plenty more pages (the first two volumes, and then some).

Friday, March 08, 2013

Another Marvel crossover event began with a bang this week, as the first issue in the Age of Ultron mini-series debuted (complete with a foil cover that you can't miss on the stands), which will see stories crossing over into several other books, including Fantastic Four, Wolverine and the X-Men and Uncanny Avengers. The mini-series will run for ten issues, with artists Brandon Peterson and Carlos Pacheco taking over art chores in later issues, after the first half is completed by Hitch. Coming off of Avengers vs. X-Men, they have quite the shoes to fill, as that crossover event proved epic and actually really, really good. Fans have been waiting for Age of Ultron for awhile now, since we got a little preview a few years ago in the opening volume of Bendis and John Romita Jr's Avengers series, in which Kang took key Avengers members to a future ruled by Ultron. So, it's been a bit of a wait, but it's finally here.

I'm glad that the creators weren't heavy-handed about spelling out what was going on in this first issue. It's a pretty basic idea - a future world where Ultron has taken over, with a few struggling heroes left, fighting back. But we see this future world through an action scene, where Hawkeye is rescuing Spider-Man, who has been captured by some villains planning on handing him over to Ultron for "favors." Through these events, we can infer what the world is like, from the dialogue between the villains, to the Ultron sentinels that appear on scene, to the welcome home that Hawkeye and Peter receive from the other remaining heroes. Solid storytelling, with nice cinematic art by Hitch make this a successful debut. Of course, since this takes place in the future, I can't really speak to how this will shape the current Marvel Universe, if at all, so this could seem like kind of a cheat - an "Age of Apocalypse" that never comes to happen. But as long as the story remains well-crafted, I'll be buying the issues.